Factors influencing household action on climate change

Climate change threatens the quality of life of households around the world, impacting human health, food supply, economic growth, water resources, among others. Although some households are already tackling climate change, the reality is that more action is needed. Many factors can influence the implementation of action, including sociodemographic characteristics as well as the access to economic and technological resources. Recent literature has also focused on exploring public perceptions of climate change, and have found that some perceptions, such as perceiving climate change as a risk, positively influence the adoption of adaptation and mitigation measures among households.

The aim of this thesis is to advance the understanding of factors, including climate change-related perceptions and sociodemographic characteristics, that influence household action on climate change. We carried out a household survey in the state of Nuevo León, Mexico, which is threatened by the impacts of climate change. The results reveal that climate change action is complex and multidimensional and is influenced by both perceptions and the sociodemographic characteristics of households. We describe how households view climate change and its impacts, and how public policies fail to acknowledge their views. As such, the results from this research can represent a starting point for governmental authorities who wish to engage households with climate change. In this respect, we see an opportunity for climate policies and programs to incorporate approaches that provide households with clear knowledge on solutions and economic and technological resources towards more and effective climate change action.